Hydrolysis kinetics of the acid and base species of oxacillin in aqueous solution

Using the method of initial rates, a study has been carried out on the different kinetic behavior of the acid and base forms of oxacillin. The acid catalytic constants of both species are determined. The acid form is much more stable with respect to hydrolysis.

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Sustainable poly(ether amide)s from lignin-derived precursors

In recent years, there have been concerted efforts to replace petrochemical products with those from renewable sources due to the unsustainability of petroleum feedstock, and the continued volatility in the price. This work describes the synthesis and thermal properties of two new lignin-derived poly(ether-amide)s as alternative thermoplastics to petroleum-based commodities. Poly-4-(2-aminoethoxy)benzoate (PEAB) and poly-4-(2-aminoethoxy)-3-methoxybenzoate (PEAV) are synthesized by a melt polycondensation and characterized by ¹H NMR spectroscopy and thermal analysis. The number average molecular weight (M_n) of the polymers are estimated from the ¹H NMR spectroscopy analysis, and were shown to be 4100 and 12,000 g/mol for PEAB and PEAV respectively. The PEAB had a higher decomposition temperature (T_d) as well as glass transition temperature (T_g) compared to PEAV; albeit, with a lower molecular weight. The polymers’ T_d were in the range of 330 °C–380 °C and the T_g were between 100 °C and 120 °C. The thermal properties of the polymers are in the desirable range for thermoplastic materials used in the packaging, storage, and coating industries. Furthermore, the polymers are susceptible to degradation under acidic conditions in a short period; a property that is highly desirable for degradable polymers. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2018 , 56, 2154–2160     

Hydrogen-antihydrogen collisions

Matter-antimatter interactions are investigated using hydrogen-antihydrogen collisions as an example. Cross sections for elastic scattering and for the antihydrogen loss (either through the rearrangement reaction, resulting in formation of protonium and positronium according to H+&Hmacr;-->p&pmacr;+e(+)e(-), or via annihilation in flight) are calculated for the first time in a fully quantum mechanical approach. Implications for experiments intending to trap and cool antihydrogen are discussed.     

Use of an internal control for matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry analysis of bacteria

A method to aid in the analysis of bacterial samples of unknown concentration by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) mass spectrometry is demonstrated. It is shown that in MALDI analysis of bacteria, the intensities of resulting peaks in spectra are sensitive to the microbial concentration. At the high and low ends of the concentration range, no signal can be obtained, leaving very concentrated or very dilute samples indistinguishable. The addition of cytochrome c as an internal control allows the differentiation of these concentrated and dilute samples. The presence of the internal control causes only a 20% to 30% decrease in signal intensity when the bacterial concentration is optimum. However, the signal quality is improved when the internal control is added to some low concentrations of bacteria.     

Erratum to: Determination of metal ion content of beverages and estimation of target hazard quotients: a comparative study

This is a correction to the following paper: Hague T, Petroczi A, Andrews PR, Barker J, Naughton DP: Determination of metal ion content of beverages and estimation of target hazard quotients: a comparative study. Chem Central J 2008, 2:13.     

The use of apatite fission track thermochronology to constrain fault movements and sedimentary basin evolution in northeastern Brazil

An apatite fission track study of crystalline rocks underlying sedimentary basins in northeastern Brazil indicate that crustal blocks that occur on opposite sides of a geological fault experienced different thermal histories. Samples collected on the West block yielded corrected fission-track ages from 140 to 375 Ma, whereas samples collected on the East block yielded ages between 90 and 125 Ma. The thermal models suggest that each block experienced two cooling events separated by a heating event at different times. We concluded that the West block moved downward relative to the East block ca. 140 Ma ago, when sediments eroded from the East side were deposited on the West side. This process represents the early stage of sedimentary basin formation and the opening of the South Atlantic Ocean in the region. Downward and upward movements related to heating and cooling events of these crustal blocks at different periods until recent times are proposed.     

A configuration-interaction-oriented implementation of the complex coordinate method

An implementation of the complex coordinate method is demonstrated that exploits a new technique for obtaining the matrix representation of the complex dilated Hamiltonian. The purpose is to make the complex coordinate method applicable together with standard numerical ab initio codes designed for large-scale calculations on many-electron atoms and/or molecules. No complex intergrals have to be calculated, and no changes of the standard codes are required even in the common case where the kinetic and potential energy components are not stored separately. Instead, two standard (real) CI calculations are used to generate the dilated (complex) CI matrix representation. The performance of the procedure is demonstrated in the context of the GAMESS program and applied to obtain the resonant structure of the Bethe surface pertinent to the absorption spectrum of the helium atom. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Optical forces from an evanescent wave on a magnetodielectric small particle

We report the first study on the optical force exerted by an evanescent wave on a small sphere with both electric and magnetic responses to the incident field, immersed in an arbitrary nondissipative medium. New expressions and effects from their gradient, radiation pressure, and curl components are obtained owing to the particle induced electric and magnetic dipoles, as well as to their mutual interaction. We predict possible dramatic changes in the force depending on the host medium, the polarization, and the nature of the surface wave.